%0 Journal Article
%T Making of Selfie Nationalism: Narendra Modi, the Paradigm Shift to Social Media Governance, and Crisis of Democracy
%A Shakuntala Rao
%J Journal of Communication Inquiry
%@ 1552-4612
%D 2018
%R 10.1177/0196859917754053
%X The 2014 general elections in India marked a new media beginning. It catapulted Narendra Modi onto the national political scene through his clever use of digital media space as a form of public relations. This article uses rhetorical analysis to analyze 1,230 of Modi¡¯s tweets between April 15 and August 15, 2017. I suggest that Modi¡¯s emphasis on social media governance leads to ¡°selfie nationalism,¡± a clear break from Mohandas Gandhi¡¯s advocacy of ¡°spiritual nationalism.¡± Modi¡¯s nationalism is based on a belief in right-wing Hinduism, a relentless advocacy for business, his presentation of himself as both a global leader and a commoner who can identify with Indians of all castes and classes, and his silence on minority rights, poverty, free press, judiciary and legislative processes, and India¡¯s plural religious traditions. I conclude that with the rise of Modi¡¯s brand of ¡°selfie nationalism,¡± coupled with increasing rural-urban polarization, democracy in India is more akin to what O¡¯Donnell refers to as ¡°delegative¡± rather than representational democracy
%K India
%K democracy
%K Narendra Modi
%K Twitter
%K selfie nationalism
%K social media
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0196859917754053